Samuel L. Jackson Didn’t Know About the ‘Unbreakable’ Sequel Until He Watched ‘Split’

(The following post contains spoilers for Split, which you almost certainly had to know when you clicked on the headline, but whatever, I’m just trying to be nice here.)

If you were shocked by the ending of M. Night Shyamalan’s Split, which featured the shocking return of Bruce Willis’ David Dunn, the hero of Shyamalan’s 2000 film Unbreakable, you are not alone. Even one of the stars of Unbreakable — who also happens to be the star (and title character!) of the sequel Split set up — had no idea the scene was coming until he watched it in a theater.

That would be Samuel L. Jackson, who played Mr. Glass, Dunn’s secretly manipulative antagonist, in Unbreakable and will return to reprise the role in Glass (it wouldn’t have that title without him). Jackson told Vulture he had no idea what Shyamalan had in mind when he sat down to watch Split:

‘I remember when Night called me last year to say, ‘I need you to watch this movie I just made, and after you watch it, I’ll tell you what I’m thinking.’ So I watched Split, and at the end of it, we get Bruce in the café and the woman talks to him about Mr. Glass.’ Jackson gasps in surprise, recalling the moment. ‘I was like, ‘So are we gonna make this movie?’ And Night says, ‘Well, it depends on the opening weekend.’’

Shyamalan’s movies even have shocking twists for their stars!

You know what happened next: Split was a surprise hit, Shyamalan’s biggest in years, and Glass was on with Jackson, Willis, and Split star James McAvoy as the Horde. Who knows what twist Shyamalan will have in store next time? I’m hoping he’ll reveal that Mark Wahlberg’s character from The Happening was the secret bad guy all along. I am ready for the Shyamalan Cinematic Universe. Glass opens in theaters on January 18, 2019.